Jessica Baker

Observation 9/6

As I walk through the glass apartment door, miniscule raindrops tenderly brush my cheeks. All

around me is a tranquil silence. Blazing bolts of lightning pierce through the ebony night sky. Present for

a mere second, the tattered, crackling bolt illuminates the patch of ebony sky behind it to reveal a

vibrant lavender patch. I gradually inhale the fresh scent of the wet and muddy earth. Thunder roars like

a mighty lion in the distance. I sit on the porch and open my charcoal gray umbrella. Rain begins to strike

my umbrella and trickle down the sides onto the pavement. Lightning bolts continue to gracefully dance

across the night sky to the percussive beat of the thunder. After sitting on the porch for a moment, I

begin to stroll to my car, umbrella in hand. Fresh, brisk rainwater splashes my toes, numbing them.

Slippery blades of grass brush the sides of my feet as I trudge through the muddy patch of lawn. I unzip

the front of my purse and fidget around to find my car keys. I press and hurriedly twist the key into the

hole toward the front of my Oldsmobile. I draw my umbrella in toward my side, close it, and climb into

the Oldsmobile. I close the door, place my soggy umbrella and purse in the passenger seat, and turn the

key in the ignition. I push the rectangular button to the left of the steering wheel to activate the

headlights. I switch on the wiper blades and watch them sweep the windshield, like the pendulum of a

metronome. As they peacefully sway from side to side, I watch the rain droplets gather and grow,

eventually sliding down the ends of the windshield. Rainfall remains rather intense, lightning reveals

itself further in the distance now, and thunder is becoming rather scarce. I twist the dial on the dash to

activate the radio. The last chorus of “You Are More” by Tenth Avenue North is playing on the radio.

Everything around me fades away as my ears focus on the lyrics before heading home:
 “You are more than the choices that you've made,

You are more than the sum of your past mistakes,

You are more than the problems you create,

You've been remade.”

I take a deep breath, back out of my parking space, and drive down country roads that lead me

home again.